[ ]ὑπὲρ τῶ[ν ......]ν: φοινικ.[] [....].κοθωράκων χ̣[....] ὑ̣πέροπλοι π[] [ ]γνηταιγιαλ̣[.....]ο̣ντες· Κυτα[ίου· Κύτα] [.... πατρὶ]ς τῆς Μηδεί[ας ..].....υστ̣ε̣ρ̣[] [........ ἡ] νῦν Θετταλία τ[ὸ] παλαιὸν Ἑλλὰ[ς] [ ].νις ἐστιν αὐτῆς, Κόλχοι δὲ καλοῦ[νται οἱ] [ἐν] τῇ Α̣ἴ̣ᾳ πολῖται, ἡ δὲ ὅλη χώρα Κολχίς[] [..]κ̣α̣[ —βασιλεύς]: νῦν τοὺς Ἕλληνας Ἰ̣ή̣[ονας] κέ[κλ]ηκεν ἀπὸ τῶν Ἀθηναίων πάντ[ας κοι-] νῶ[ς·] οὗτοι γὰρ πρότερ[ο]ν Ἰάονες ἐκαλοῦν[το· καὶ] Ὅμηρος ἐπὰν λέγῃ· «Ἰά̣ο̣ν̣ες ἑλκεσίπεπ̣λ̣[οι»] τοὺς Ἀθηναίους λέγει· πο̣δήρ[εις γὰ]ρ [χιτῶνας ἐ-] φόρ̣[ου]ν κατʼ ἀρχάς, ὃν τρόπον καὶ Πέρ̣σ̣α̣[ι Σ]ύ̣ρ̣[οι Καρ-] χη[δ]όνιοι. ἱστορεῖ δὲ ταῦτα Κλείδ[ημος ἐν] Ἀτθίδι. ἀπὸ μέρους οὖν τοὺς Ἕλ[ληνας Ἀθηναίους] εἴρηκεν, ὃν τρόπον καὶ Πίνδαρος: «Ἑ[λλάδος ἔ-] ρεισμʼ Ἀθῆναι», Ἰάονες δὲ κέκληντα[ι ἀπὸ Ἴωνος] τ̣οῦ Ξούθου τοῦ Αἰόλου τοῦ Ἕ[λ]λ̣η̣[νος] ..[..].. ἀντὶ τοῦ ἔκτανον.[] κ[αθάπε]ρ καὶ Ὅ[μ]ηρος ..[]
This work is an ancient prose scholium, or explanatory note, on the first book of Callimachus’s Aetia. Scholia are commentaries that elucidate difficult words, references, and passages in a primary text. Callimachus’s Aetia (c. 310–240 BCE) is a learned, allusive elegiac poem collecting mythical and historical origin stories. The scholia to his works form a corpus of ancient scholarship essential for interpreting his dense poetry.
As a commentary, its content is determined by the Callimachean passage it explicates. Its focus typically involves:
The scholia are preserved in the margins of medieval manuscripts containing Callimachus’s works. The principal source for the Aetia and its scholia is the 13th-century CE Laurentian manuscript Conventi Soppressi 627. These scholia are compilations drawing on earlier Hellenistic scholarship, such as the lost commentary by the grammarian Theon.
The scholia provide narrative context for the reconstruction of the fragmentary Aetia. They preserve fragments of lost works, historical details, and are a primary source for ancient literary criticism and the reception of Hellenistic poetry.